priest on temple
grounds.
State Shinto, a
governmentimposed religion
that combined
patriotism with
worship of the
emperor, was
abolished after
World War II.
The constitution
now guarantees
religious freedom. However,
social and family
pressures often
restrict that
freedom.
In addition, many
Japanese also heed the
philosophies of
Confucianism. In fact,
most reject the concept
that one religion
monopolizes the truth.
Shintoism (“the way of
the gods”) has no fixed
doctrinal theology or
hierarchies. The religion
claims that many gods,
or “kami,” indwell
mountains, rocks, trees,
and other objects of
nature. It also stresses
reverence for ancestral
spirits of the nation,
clan, and family.
Since World War II, a
large number of religious sects have arisen
in Japan. The Unification Church, Jehovah’s
Witnesses, and
Mormonism all claim
significant followings.
The materialism that
dominates Japanese cul-
CHRISTIANITY
IN JAPAN
ture often squeezes out
concern about spiritual
matters. Only one in
five Japanese claim a
belief in God. That,
coupled with the fact
that Christianity is
viewed as a “foreign”
religion, has resulted in
a Christian minority of
only about one percent
in Japan.
Christianity was introduced to Japan in the
sixteenth century when
Spanish and Portuguese
missionaries established themselves on
the islands. Within less
than a century, 300,000
Japanese had converted
to Catholicism.
FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION
The Embassy of Japan
2520 Massachusetts
Ave., NW Washington,
DC 20008
(202) 238-6700
www.embjapan.org
The Japan National
Tourist Organization
One Rockefeller Plaza,
Suite 1250, New York,
NY 10020
(212) 757-5640
www.jnto.go.jp
SOURCES
•
The Japanese Mind. Robert C.
Christopher. New York:
Fawcett Columbine, 1983.
Operation World. Patrick
Johnstone. Waynesboro, Ga.:
STL Books and WEC
International, 1987.
Society and Education in
Japan. Herbert Passin. Tokyo:
Kodanshu International, Ltd.,
1982.
The World Almanac and Book
of Facts—1992. New York:
Pharos Books, 1991.
World Books Encyclopedia.
Chicago: World Book, Inc.,
1990.
Background Notes—
Japan. Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of State, Bureau of
Public Affairs, 1990.
The World Factbook, CIA,
January 2004.
http://www.cia.gov/cia/
publications/factbook/ja.html.
Countries of the World and
Their Leaders Yearbook 2004,
Vol. 1, Status of the World’s
Nations. Gale, Thomas: ISSN
0196-2809.
The World Gazetteer
www.world-gazetteer.com
In response, Japan’s
rulers began a scourge
in which thousands of
Christians were killed,
and Western missionaries were barred from
entering the country.
Culturgram for the
‘90s—Japan. Provo, Utah:
Brigham Young University,
David M. Kennedy Center for
International Studies, 1991.
Today, evangelical
growth is slow. Even
among professing
Christians, church attendance in Japan
is low.
Fodor’s ‘91 Japan. New York:
Fodor’s Travel Publications,
Inc., 1991.
The Economic Business
Traveler’s Guides: Japan. New
York: Prentice Hall Press, 1987.
For more information
about International
Students, Inc., call
1-800-ISI-TEAM or
(719) 576-2700,
fax (719) 576-5363,
email information@
isionline.org, or write:
ISI, PO Box C,
Colorado Springs, CO
80901. Visit our
website at
www.isionline.org.
Japan—A Travel Survival Kit.
Ian L. McQueen. Berkely,
Calif.: Lonely Planet
Publications, 1989.
TOKYO
OSAKA
• •
NAGOYA
★
YOKOHAMA
GEOGRAPHY
Japan is a collection of
more than 3,000 islands
situated east of China,
Korea, and Russia in
the Pacific Ocean. Of
those, only 440 are
inhabited, with the four
main islands being:
• Honshu, the largest
and most populated
island, on which
Tokyo is located;
• Hokkaido to the
north;
• Kyushu to the south;
• Shikoku, cradled
between Kyushu and
Hokkaido.
The combined size of
all of the islands is
146,000 square miles—
about the size of
Montana.
Most of Japan is mountainous, while only 11
percent of the land is
arable. The islands also
contain many volcanoes, several of which
Japan in Figures 2004.
http://www.stat.go.jp/english/
2/1/99
•
JAPAN
SAPPORO
data/figures/index.html.
9/23/04.
A COUNTRY PROFILE FROM INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS, INC.
are still active. The
most famous volcano is
Mountain Fuji—
Japan’s highest point at
12,388 feet above sea
level—which last
erupted in 1707.
An average of
four earthquakes
of varying
intensity occur in
Japan each day.
The climate is generally
temperate and warm,
with humid summers
and cool winters. The
islands are subject to
two rainy seasons—
mid-June to early July,
and September through
October. Typhoons are
common in late summer
and early fall.
PEOPLE &
LANGUAGE
Japan is one of the
most densely populated
nations of the world,
with more than 800
people per square mile.
In addition, most of its
nearly 126 million citizens are concentrated in
the narrow plains along
its coasts. Population
control efforts in the
country have reduced
the growth rate to about
.2 percent.
Japan has an extremely
homogenous population; more than 99 percent of its residents are
ethnic Japanese.
Koreans represent the
largest minority ethnic
group.
Japanese, one of the
most difficult languages in the world, is
the country’s official
language. Although it is
spoken in several
dialects, the Tokyo
dialect is the standard
used by schools, radio,
and television, and is
understood by almost
all Japanese.
For Japanese,
saying “yes”
doesn’t always
signal agreement. It can
mean, “Yes, I
understand what
you are saying.”
“No” is severe.
So to maintain
harmony, many
Japanese will
say, “Let me
think about it”
rather than “no.”
Japanese is also
spoken in different
styles according to
social situations: intimate for everyday use;
polite for cultivated
use; and honorific to
show respect.
MAJOR CITY
CENTERS
More than three-fourths
of Japan’s population
lives in urban areas.
The capital city, Tokyo,
is the country’s largest
city with a population
of over 12 million.
Kyushu. The ensuing
decades brought
European missionaries
and traders to Japan.
Many other Japanese
cities have populations
over one million,
including:
Japan’s leaders severed
ties to the West in the
early 1600s after the
Tokugawa family began
its 250-year rule.
• Yokohama (3.5
million)
• Osaka (8.8)
• Nagoya (2.1)
• Sapporo (1.8)
• Kyoto (2.6)
• Kobe (1.5)
• Fukuoka (5)
• Kawasaki (1.2)
POLITICAL
HISTORY
According to legend,
Japan was founded
around 600 B.C. by
Emperor Jimmu, the
first in a line of emperors that continues to the
present. Earliest records
of a unified Japan, however, date from around
A.D. 400.
During the country’s
early years, Japan borrowed heavily from
Chinese culture. One
key introduction was
that of Buddhism,
which has had a lasting
effect on Japan.
Military dictators, or
“shoguns,” ruled Japan
from 1192 to 1867. The
country’s first contact
with the Western world
occurred around 1543,
when Portuguese sailors
were shipwrecked off
During that time, Japan
was closed to all
missionaries and its
ports were closed to
trade until Commodore
Matthew C. Perry of the
U.S. sailed his warships
into Tokyo Bay in 1854.
Japan opened two ports
to U.S. traders the next
year.
The Tokugawa family
was overthrown in
1867, and the emperor
regained power. The
following year, 16-yearold Emperor Meiji
announced Japan’s
intent to become an
industrial power.
As a result, Japan
imported Western industrial ideas and methods.
By the early 1900s, the
country had become an
industrial and military
power.
After its defeat in World
War II, Japan entered a
new era. On May 3,
1947, it implemented a
new constitution
forbidding military
aggression. The country
also intensified its
efforts toward becoming
the industrial power it
now is.
Today, Japan is governed by a constitutional monarchy. As a
democratic society and
world economic power,
Japan and the U.S.
share many similarities.
Consequently, Japan is
one of the U.S.’s most
important partners, and
the countries work
together on many
issues.
ECONOMY
Japan has one of the
highest rates of economic growth in the
world. In fact, the
country is the second
most technologically
powerful economy in
the world. Japan is also
one of the world’s
largest trading nations.
In 1986, Japan’s
Supreme Court
ruled that one’s
job must take
precedence over
private life.
Because of its limited
resources, Japan is
dependent on importing
most of the natural
resources needed to run
its industrial complex,
including nearly half of
its food and almost all
of its oil.
Japan’s fishing and
shipbuilding industries
are among the largest in
the world. Its sizeable
fishing fleet nets rough-
ly 15 percent of the
world’s total catch.
The nation’s major
industrial products
include motor vehicles,
electronic equipment,
machine tools, steel and
nonferrous metals,
ships, chemicals, textiles and processed
foods.
After three decades of
remarkable economic
growth, Japan’s economic growth slowed
dramatically during the
early 1990s and efforts
to revive it have had little success. Japan’s
huge government debt
and the aging of the
population are two
major long-term economic concerns.
EDUCATION
Japan’s rigorous educational system is one of
the secrets behind its
tremendous industrial
success. Free public
schooling is provided
through junior high
school, and attendance
is compulsory.
Nearly 90 percent of all
Japanese students go on
to attend and complete
high school, for which
they must pass an
entrance exam.
Competition to get into
colleges is fierce, and
many students are
turned down. Students
not accepted into premier colleges in Japan
have the option of
attending a “lesser”
college (similar to U.S.
junior colleges or technical schools), studying
abroad, or waiting to
take the entrance exam
again the next year.
Japan is the fourth
largest student-sending
country to U.S.
colleges and universities. During the
2002/03 academic year,
45,960 Japanese
studied in the U.S.
Despite the difficulty of
the language, Japan has
one of the world’s highest literacy rates (99
percent).
CULTURE
Japanese typically feel
a tremendous obligation and loyalty to the
groups to which they
belong, including
family, their companies, clubs and organizations.
For example, many
Japanese spend their
entire lives with the
same company. The
value of hard work is
also stressed, with
workers characteristically devoting long
hours to their jobs.
In Japan, the individual’s will is considered
secondary to the good
of the group. Because
of this, groups almost
always operate by
consensus, and even
powerful individuals
seldom make decisions
without seeking input
from others. The
Japanese go to great
lengths to avoid personal confrontation.
RULES OF
ETIQUETTE
• Pointing, licking
your chopsticks,
and blowing
your nose are
all considered
offensive.
• Public displays
of affection are
frowned upon.
• The depth of a
bow is determined by the status of the person
to whom you are
bowing.
• Japanese
require more
personal space
when talking face
to face.
• When invited to
a Japanese person’s home,
bring a small gift.
The Japanese, while an
extremely gracious
people, value reserve
and modesty in all relationships. Age and tradition are honored in
Japanese culture.
People in Japan enjoy a
wide variety of recreational activities.
Performance arts such
as puppet theater (bunraku), drama, and
music concerts are popular. Nature outings are
another favorite form of
leisure.
Baseball is the national
pastime, although
volleyball, tennis,
skiing, basketball, and
golf also claim many
enthusiasts in Japan.
Traditional sports such
as sumo wrestling, judo,
and karate continue to
retain their popularity.
HOLIDAYS
Following are some of
the national holidays
celebrated in Japan:
• January 1—New
Year’s Day is the highlight of the weeklong
“festival of festivals,”
which is observed in
traditional dress with
visits to shrines and
family reunions.
• April 29—Formerly
Emperor Hirohito’s
Birthday. Also known
as Green Day.
• May 3—Constitution
Memorial Day
observes the anniversary of the Japanese
Constitution enacted in
1947.
• August 13-16—Bon
Festival features
Buddhist ceremonies
to honor one’s
ancestors.
• September 15—
Respect for the Aged
Day.
• October l0—HealthSports Day commemorates the 1964 Tokyo
Olympics.
• November 23—Labor
Day Thanksgiving
features harvest
celebrations.
• December 23—
Emperor Akihito’s
Birthday.
RELIGION
Many Japanese do not
claim a personal religion, yet the country’s
two traditional religions—Shintoism and
Buddhism—have a profound influence on the
culture.
Japanese adhere to a
blend of these two
religious philosophies
in hopes of obtaining
perfect peace and
happiness. They also
believe doing so will
lead to a life of virtue
and wisdom.
The Japanese view both
religions as different
paths to the same goal.
Buddhist temples and
Shinto shrines stand
side by side in the
country. Many Japanese
will have births and
weddings blessed in the
Shinto tradition and be
buried by a Buddhist
The capital city, Tokyo,
is the country’s largest
city with a population
of over 12 million.
Kyushu. The ensuing
decades brought
European missionaries
and traders to Japan.
Many other Japanese
cities have populations
over one million,
including:
Japan’s leaders severed
ties to the West in the
early 1600s after the
Tokugawa family began
its 250-year rule.
• Yokohama (3.5
million)
• Osaka (8.8)
• Nagoya (2.1)
• Sapporo (1.8)
• Kyoto (2.6)
• Kobe (1.5)
• Fukuoka (5)
• Kawasaki (1.2)
POLITICAL
HISTORY
According to legend,
Japan was founded
around 600 B.C. by
Emperor Jimmu, the
first in a line of emperors that continues to the
present. Earliest records
of a unified Japan, however, date from around
A.D. 400.
During the country’s
early years, Japan borrowed heavily from
Chinese culture. One
key introduction was
that of Buddhism,
which has had a lasting
effect on Japan.
Military dictators, or
“shoguns,” ruled Japan
from 1192 to 1867. The
country’s first contact
with the Western world
occurred around 1543,
when Portuguese sailors
were shipwrecked off
During that time, Japan
was closed to all
missionaries and its
ports were closed to
trade until Commodore
Matthew C. Perry of the
U.S. sailed his warships
into Tokyo Bay in 1854.
Japan opened two ports
to U.S. traders the next
year.
The Tokugawa family
was overthrown in
1867, and the emperor
regained power. The
following year, 16-yearold Emperor Meiji
announced Japan’s
intent to become an
industrial power.
As a result, Japan
imported Western industrial ideas and methods.
By the early 1900s, the
country had become an
industrial and military
power.
After its defeat in World
War II, Japan entered a
new era. On May 3,
1947, it implemented a
new constitution
forbidding military
aggression. The country
also intensified its
efforts toward becoming
the industrial power it
now is.
Today, Japan is governed by a constitutional monarchy. As a
democratic society and
world economic power,
Japan and the U.S.
share many similarities.
Consequently, Japan is
one of the U.S.’s most
important partners, and
the countries work
together on many
issues.
ECONOMY
Japan has one of the
highest rates of economic growth in the
world. In fact, the
country is the second
most technologically
powerful economy in
the world. Japan is also
one of the world’s
largest trading nations.
In 1986, Japan’s
Supreme Court
ruled that one’s
job must take
precedence over
private life.
Because of its limited
resources, Japan is
dependent on importing
most of the natural
resources needed to run
its industrial complex,
including nearly half of
its food and almost all
of its oil.
Japan’s fishing and
shipbuilding industries
are among the largest in
the world. Its sizeable
fishing fleet nets rough-
ly 15 percent of the
world’s total catch.
The nation’s major
industrial products
include motor vehicles,
electronic equipment,
machine tools, steel and
nonferrous metals,
ships, chemicals, textiles and processed
foods.
After three decades of
remarkable economic
growth, Japan’s economic growth slowed
dramatically during the
early 1990s and efforts
to revive it have had little success. Japan’s
huge government debt
and the aging of the
population are two
major long-term economic concerns.
EDUCATION
Japan’s rigorous educational system is one of
the secrets behind its
tremendous industrial
success. Free public
schooling is provided
through junior high
school, and attendance
is compulsory.
Nearly 90 percent of all
Japanese students go on
to attend and complete
high school, for which
they must pass an
entrance exam.
Competition to get into
colleges is fierce, and
many students are
turned down. Students
not accepted into premier colleges in Japan
have the option of
attending a “lesser”
college (similar to U.S.
junior colleges or technical schools), studying
abroad, or waiting to
take the entrance exam
again the next year.
Japan is the fourth
largest student-sending
country to U.S.
colleges and universities. During the
2002/03 academic year,
45,960 Japanese
studied in the U.S.
Despite the difficulty of
the language, Japan has
one of the world’s highest literacy rates (99
percent).
CULTURE
Japanese typically feel
a tremendous obligation and loyalty to the
groups to which they
belong, including
family, their companies, clubs and organizations.
For example, many
Japanese spend their
entire lives with the
same company. The
value of hard work is
also stressed, with
workers characteristically devoting long
hours to their jobs.
In Japan, the individual’s will is considered
secondary to the good
of the group. Because
of this, groups almost
always operate by
consensus, and even
powerful individuals
seldom make decisions
without seeking input
from others. The
Japanese go to great
lengths to avoid personal confrontation.
RULES OF
ETIQUETTE
• Pointing, licking
your chopsticks,
and blowing
your nose are
all considered
offensive.
• Public displays
of affection are
frowned upon.
• The depth of a
bow is determined by the status of the person
to whom you are
bowing.
• Japanese
require more
personal space
when talking face
to face.
• When invited to
a Japanese person’s home,
bring a small gift.
The Japanese, while an
extremely gracious
people, value reserve
and modesty in all relationships. Age and tradition are honored in
Japanese culture.
People in Japan enjoy a
wide variety of recreational activities.
Performance arts such
as puppet theater (bunraku), drama, and
music concerts are popular. Nature outings are
another favorite form of
leisure.
Baseball is the national
pastime, although
volleyball, tennis,
skiing, basketball, and
golf also claim many
enthusiasts in Japan.
Traditional sports such
as sumo wrestling, judo,
and karate continue to
retain their popularity.
HOLIDAYS
Following are some of
the national holidays
celebrated in Japan:
• January 1—New
Year’s Day is the highlight of the weeklong
“festival of festivals,”
which is observed in
traditional dress with
visits to shrines and
family reunions.
• April 29—Formerly
Emperor Hirohito’s
Birthday. Also known
as Green Day.
• May 3—Constitution
Memorial Day
observes the anniversary of the Japanese
Constitution enacted in
1947.
• August 13-16—Bon
Festival features
Buddhist ceremonies
to honor one’s
ancestors.
• September 15—
Respect for the Aged
Day.
• October l0—HealthSports Day commemorates the 1964 Tokyo
Olympics.
• November 23—Labor
Day Thanksgiving
features harvest
celebrations.
• December 23—
Emperor Akihito’s
Birthday.
RELIGION
Many Japanese do not
claim a personal religion, yet the country’s
two traditional religions—Shintoism and
Buddhism—have a profound influence on the
culture.
Japanese adhere to a
blend of these two
religious philosophies
in hopes of obtaining
perfect peace and
happiness. They also
believe doing so will
lead to a life of virtue
and wisdom.
The Japanese view both
religions as different
paths to the same goal.
Buddhist temples and
Shinto shrines stand
side by side in the
country. Many Japanese
will have births and
weddings blessed in the
Shinto tradition and be
buried by a Buddhist
priest on temple
grounds.
State Shinto, a
governmentimposed religion
that combined
patriotism with
worship of the
emperor, was
abolished after
World War II.
The constitution
now guarantees
religious freedom. However,
social and family
pressures often
restrict that
freedom.
In addition, many
Japanese also heed the
philosophies of
Confucianism. In fact,
most reject the concept
that one religion
monopolizes the truth.
Shintoism (“the way of
the gods”) has no fixed
doctrinal theology or
hierarchies. The religion
claims that many gods,
or “kami,” indwell
mountains, rocks, trees,
and other objects of
nature. It also stresses
reverence for ancestral
spirits of the nation,
clan, and family.
Since World War II, a
large number of religious sects have arisen
in Japan. The Unification Church, Jehovah’s
Witnesses, and
Mormonism all claim
significant followings.
The materialism that
dominates Japanese cul-
CHRISTIANITY
IN JAPAN
ture often squeezes out
concern about spiritual
matters. Only one in
five Japanese claim a
belief in God. That,
coupled with the fact
that Christianity is
viewed as a “foreign”
religion, has resulted in
a Christian minority of
only about one percent
in Japan.
Christianity was introduced to Japan in the
sixteenth century when
Spanish and Portuguese
missionaries established themselves on
the islands. Within less
than a century, 300,000
Japanese had converted
to Catholicism.
FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION
The Embassy of Japan
2520 Massachusetts
Ave., NW Washington,
DC 20008
(202) 238-6700
www.embjapan.org
The Japan National
Tourist Organization
One Rockefeller Plaza,
Suite 1250, New York,
NY 10020
(212) 757-5640
www.jnto.go.jp
SOURCES
•
The Japanese Mind. Robert C.
Christopher. New York:
Fawcett Columbine, 1983.
Operation World. Patrick
Johnstone. Waynesboro, Ga.:
STL Books and WEC
International, 1987.
Society and Education in
Japan. Herbert Passin. Tokyo:
Kodanshu International, Ltd.,
1982.
The World Almanac and Book
of Facts—1992. New York:
Pharos Books, 1991.
World Books Encyclopedia.
Chicago: World Book, Inc.,
1990.
Background Notes—
Japan. Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of State, Bureau of
Public Affairs, 1990.
The World Factbook, CIA,
January 2004.
http://www.cia.gov/cia/
publications/factbook/ja.html.
Countries of the World and
Their Leaders Yearbook 2004,
Vol. 1, Status of the World’s
Nations. Gale, Thomas: ISSN
0196-2809.
The World Gazetteer
www.world-gazetteer.com
In response, Japan’s
rulers began a scourge
in which thousands of
Christians were killed,
and Western missionaries were barred from
entering the country.
Culturgram for the
‘90s—Japan. Provo, Utah:
Brigham Young University,
David M. Kennedy Center for
International Studies, 1991.
Today, evangelical
growth is slow. Even
among professing
Christians, church attendance in Japan
is low.
Fodor’s ‘91 Japan. New York:
Fodor’s Travel Publications,
Inc., 1991.
The Economic Business
Traveler’s Guides: Japan. New
York: Prentice Hall Press, 1987.
For more information
about International
Students, Inc., call
1-800-ISI-TEAM or
(719) 576-2700,
fax (719) 576-5363,
email information@
isionline.org, or write:
ISI, PO Box C,
Colorado Springs, CO
80901. Visit our
website at
www.isionline.org.
Japan—A Travel Survival Kit.
Ian L. McQueen. Berkely,
Calif.: Lonely Planet
Publications, 1989.
TOKYO
OSAKA
• •
NAGOYA
★
YOKOHAMA
GEOGRAPHY
Japan is a collection of
more than 3,000 islands
situated east of China,
Korea, and Russia in
the Pacific Ocean. Of
those, only 440 are
inhabited, with the four
main islands being:
• Honshu, the largest
and most populated
island, on which
Tokyo is located;
• Hokkaido to the
north;
• Kyushu to the south;
• Shikoku, cradled
between Kyushu and
Hokkaido.
The combined size of
all of the islands is
146,000 square miles—
about the size of
Montana.
Most of Japan is mountainous, while only 11
percent of the land is
arable. The islands also
contain many volcanoes, several of which
Japan in Figures 2004.
http://www.stat.go.jp/english/
2/1/99
•
JAPAN
SAPPORO
data/figures/index.html.
9/23/04.
A COUNTRY PROFILE FROM INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS, INC.
are still active. The
most famous volcano is
Mountain Fuji—
Japan’s highest point at
12,388 feet above sea
level—which last
erupted in 1707.
An average of
four earthquakes
of varying
intensity occur in
Japan each day.
The climate is generally
temperate and warm,
with humid summers
and cool winters. The
islands are subject to
two rainy seasons—
mid-June to early July,
and September through
October. Typhoons are
common in late summer
and early fall.
PEOPLE &
LANGUAGE
Japan is one of the
most densely populated
nations of the world,
with more than 800
people per square mile.
In addition, most of its
nearly 126 million citizens are concentrated in
the narrow plains along
its coasts. Population
control efforts in the
country have reduced
the growth rate to about
.2 percent.
Japan has an extremely
homogenous population; more than 99 percent of its residents are
ethnic Japanese.
Koreans represent the
largest minority ethnic
group.
Japanese, one of the
most difficult languages in the world, is
the country’s official
language. Although it is
spoken in several
dialects, the Tokyo
dialect is the standard
used by schools, radio,
and television, and is
understood by almost
all Japanese.
For Japanese,
saying “yes”
doesn’t always
signal agreement. It can
mean, “Yes, I
understand what
you are saying.”
“No” is severe.
So to maintain
harmony, many
Japanese will
say, “Let me
think about it”
rather than “no.”
Japanese is also
spoken in different
styles according to
social situations: intimate for everyday use;
polite for cultivated
use; and honorific to
show respect.
MAJOR CITY
CENTERS
More than three-fourths
of Japan’s population
lives in urban areas.